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Carbon Disclosure Project 2012 – the deadline is May 31st 2012

Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP- 2012), under its Investor CDP disclosure program requested climate change information from India’s 200 largest companies by market capitalization, as listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange. Companies can disclose their carbon footprint and other climate change related information online on CDP website till 31st May 2012. CDP sends out its annual information request to companies worldwide on 1st February, after which the online response system is open for data input from disclosing companies. This is the sixth year that the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) sending its annual information request to the top 200 Indian companies.

Why disclose to CDP?

CDP website highlights words of Lord Adair Turner Chairman, UK Financial Services Authority – “The first step towards managing carbon emissions is to measure them because in business what gets measured gets managed”.  It is hundred percent true and CDP follows the same philosophy.

Investors around the world are increasingly asking companies to prepare for climate change risks and opportunities. It is anticipated that the future investments would be made in the companies that are energy efficient, low carbon intensive and subsequently have lower impacts on environment and society. CDP acts on behalf of 655 institutional investors, holding $78 trillion in assets under management.

Climate change is a buzz word in today’s life. Everybody is using it to show their concern towards environment but very few actually take measures   to mitigate it. Climate change affects all aspects of individual and social life. Businesses cannot hide from climate change related consequences and hence it is more than just a physical phenomenon. Calculating and disclosing GHG emissions from the various operations of the organization can help in readiness for future regulatory environment. Today CDP is asking to disclose this information but tomorrow respective governments may also ask for the same. With regard to India, already policy level interventions are being made through the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC).

Climate change may cause extreme weather conditions like cyclones, flooding, acid rains, etc. It can also trigger resource scarcity, energy scarcity and change the micro and macro climatic patterns of certain regions or the whole world.  It is a business risk which is induced by climate change and needs to be addresses before precious time for action elapses..

About CDP

In 2000, the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) was launched by an UK based nonprofit organization helping to disclose greenhouse gas emissions. Many companies like Dell, PepsiCo and Walmart across the world are actively disclosing their Green House Gas emissions through CDP.  CDP is the key to accelerate climate change mitigation initiatives by providing quantitative information about the green house gas emissions. About 3,000 organizations in some 60 countries around the world now measure and disclose their greenhouse gas emissions and climate change strategies through CDP, in order that they can set reduction targets and make performance improvements. The data is made available for use by a wide audience including institutional investors, corporations, policy makers and their advisors, public sector organizations, government bodies, academics and the public.

CDP acts on behalf of 655 institutional investors, holding $78 trillion in assets under management and some 60 purchasing organizations such as Cadbury, PepsiCo and Wal-Mart. CDP helps organizations/companies in the following ways;

 

How CDP help your organization to manage climate related risks?

 

Funding bodies of CDP

Many organizations including Nathan Cummings and Esmée Fairbairn Foundations provide funding for CDP. In addition, governments across Europe and the US along with corporate sponsors also provide funding to CDP.

 

 CDP and India

CDP requests climate change related information from India’s largest companies on the basis of their market capitalization. WWF India is one of the country’s largest non-governmental organizations and The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) -an industry led not-for-profit, registered society are working with CDP India program. Last year (In 2011), 57 companies from the India’s top 200 responded to the CDP questionnaire.

 CDP in news

Carbon Disclosure Project is recommended as a framework for compliance with Caring for Climate reporting requirements (3 May 2012) : Caring for Climate, a joint initiative between the United Nations Global Compact and the United Nations Environment Programme, has recommended the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) as a reporting framework for its signatory companies in reporting guidance issued last week. (Read more here)

Carbon Disclosure Project receives 2012 SAP® Pinnacle award (05 April 2012): The Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) is the recipient of a 2012 SAP® Pinnacle award in the “Global OEM Newcomer of the Year” category. The SAP Pinnacle awards recognize the leading SAP partners across a wide variety of categories, including resellers, OEMs, sustainability, technology, support, services and outsourcing. (Read more here)

 

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